Plants of the Week

Chlorophytum comosum

Common names: hen-and-chickens, spider plant (Eng.); hen-en-kuikens (Afr.); iphamba (Zulu)

Family: Agavaceae

Chlorophytum comosum is a perennial lily-like plant with tuberous roots, bearing spreading to recurved soft leaves from a central rosette and an elongated...

05 / 11 / 2012 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG

Chlorophytum saundersiae

Common names: weeping anthericum (Eng.); watergras (Afr.)

Family: Agavaceae

Chlorophytum saundersiae is a popular garden plant and is used extensively by landscape gardeners. It has a pleasing grass-like appearance making it a...

13 / 05 / 2013 | A Johannsmeier | Pretoria NBG

Caputia tomentosa

Common names: woolly caputia, tinderbush (Eng.); tontelbossie, tontelbos, tonteldoos (Afr.)

Family: Asteraceae

A very striking shrublet with beautiful silvery white, cylindrical succulent leaves and yellow discoid-daisy flowerheads in late summer and autumn. It...

13 / 04 / 2023 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG

Cichorium intybus

Common names: blue dandelion, chicory (Eng.); sigorei (Afr.)

Family: Asteraceae

Most people will only admire this pretty, blue-flowered weed along roads and in abandoned fields and not know its other useful properties. Although mostly...

19 / 06 / 2017 | Marinda Koekemoer | National Herbarium Pretoria

Clutia pulchella

Common names: common lightning bush, lightning bush, warty-fruited lightning bush (Eng); gewone bliksembos, oumeisieknie, weerligbos, vratjievrug-bliksembos (Afr);

Family: Peraceae

Clutia pulchella is easily distinguishable by its striking 'ladder-like', alternating arrangement of leaves, often with red leaves among the green....

22 / 04 / 2024 | Lungelo L. Sikhakhane | Free State NBG

Carpobrotus muirii

Common names: Albertinia sour fig, dwarf sour fig (Eng.), Albertinia-suurvy, kleinsuurvy (Afr.)

Family: Aizoaceae

The Albertinia sour fig is a mat-forming leaf succulent from sandy regions near Albertinia in the Western Cape. It is the smallest of the species of Carpobrotus...

29 / 04 / 2024 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG

Cineraria saxifraga

Common names: wild cineraria; geelblom

Family: Asteraceae

Cineraria saxifraga, with its delicate foliage and bright yellow flowers, is a rewarding and versatile plant for the garden....

18 / 03 / 2002 | Ebrahim Lawrence | Kirstenbosch NBG

Citrullus lanatus

Common names: tsamma melon, wild watermelon (Eng.); bitterboela, bitterwaatlemoen, karkoer (Afr.); t'sama (Khoisan); makataan (Tswana)

Family: Cucurbitaceae

...

26 / 12 / 2011 | M Welman | National Herbarium Pretoria

Cladostemon kirkii

Common names: three-finger bush, butterfly-tree (Eng.); Tonga-kierie (Eng. & Afr.); umThekwini, umusi-iyamuka, uphanda, isidumbu (isiZulu)

Family: Brassicaceae

How is it possible that a tree with such attractive flowers should bear fruits with such an awful stench?...

07 / 05 / 2007 | Hugh Glen | KwaZulu-Natal NBG

Clematis brachiata

Common names: traveller's joy, old man's beard, wild clematis; klimop, lemoenbloeisels (Afr.); ityolo (isiXhosa); morara (S); mogau (T); umdlonzo (isiZulu)

Family: Ranunculaceae

...

25 / 03 / 2002 | Cherise Viljoen | Kirstenbosch NBG

Cleome foliosa

Common names: Yellow glory, yellow spindlepod.

Family: Brassicaceae

Cleome foliosa is a charming annual for the water wise garden....

10 / 02 / 2014 | Anthony R. Magee | Compton Herbarium

Cissus quadrangularis

Common names: climbing cactus, cactus vine, succulent-stemmed wild grape, edible-stemmed vine (Eng.); velddruif (Afr.); ijovane, isinwazi, umhlushwane, umnhlonhlwan

Family: Vitaceae

A climber with square, fleshy, green stems and red berries in summer. The stems, roots and leaves are used in traditional medicine to treat various human...

24 / 01 / 2022 | M Mashiane | National Herbarium Pretoria

Cleome gynandra

Common names: African cabbage, spider-wisp (Eng.); murudi (Venda); snotterbelletjie (Afr.); morotho (Northern Sotho)

Family: Capparaceae

African cabbage is of economic importance as it is among the herbs that are used as indigenous vegetables in rural areas of southern Africa. Analyses have...

03 / 10 / 2011 | Cathbert Makgakga | National Herbarium Pretoria

Clerodendron glabrum

Common names: tinderwood (Eng.); moswaapeba (Sotho); tontelhout (Afr.); munukha-tshilongwe (Venda); umqwaqwanam (Xhosa); umQoqonga (Zulu); xinhunwelambeva (Tswana);

Family: Lamiaceae

This is a small tree with smelly leaves and scented flowers in summer. It has many traditional uses....

27 / 08 / 2012 | Lufuno Nenungwi | Walter Sisulu NBG

Callilepis leptophylla

Common names: wild daisy (Eng.); bergbitterbossie (Afr.); imphila (siSwati)

Family: Asteraceae

An aromatic perennial herb with needle-like leaves and large flowers early in the season, and it mixes well with grasses. ...

28 / 10 / 2019 | T.T. Masupa | National Herbarium Pretoria

Cliffortia ferruginea

Common names: glossy cliffortia (Eng.); glastee, pypsteelbos, teringtee (Afr.)

Family: Rosaceae

A hardy, attractive ground cover with glossy green foliage that is so very versatile it can find a place to please in any everyone's garden....

12 / 09 / 2005 | Cherise Viljoen | Kirstenbosch NBG

Cephalanthus natalensis

Common names: strawberry bush, tree-strawberry, quinine berry (Eng.); witaarbeibos, witpruim (Afr.); mothotwe, motlholobu (Northern Sotho); murondo, mutsanda (Tshiv

Family: Rubiaceae

...

07 / 08 / 2017 | Lufuno Nenungwi | Free State NBG

Clivia caulescens

Common names: stem clivia, stalked clivia

Family: Amaryllidaceae

Clivia caulescens is a strong grower, with stems up to 2 m long. It flowers in midsummer and will attract birds to the garden....

27 / 12 / 2004 | John Winter | Kirstenbosch NBG

Carpobrotus mellei

Common names: mountain sourfig (Eng.), bergsuurvy (Afr.)

Family: Aizoaceae

The mountain sourfig is a mat-forming leaf succulent from the mountains in the Western Cape. The leaves are ascending and slightly glaucous, the flowers...

03 / 06 / 2024 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG

Clivia gardenii

Common names: Major Garden's clivia, Natal drooping clivia (English); boslelie (Afrikaans); umayime (Zulu)

Family: Amaryllidaceae

Clivia gardenii is a subtle and delicately pretty sister to the well known Clivia miniata (Bush Lily), which has been in cultivation for many...

30 / 04 / 2001 | Alice Aubrey | Walter Sisulu NBG

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